Just watched all the clips. OMG it is the best show I have ever seen that has people with DS in it! Can't wait to see more of it. What a bloody fantastic way to raise public awareness. I read on the forum , someone commented that it was great becauase it gave the public a chance to see how "they" really are. As in you only normally see them in the street but have no idea about their real lives.

Thank you so much Carolyn, for making me aware of this show.I have to admit that since Wils birth, I have only been living day to day. I have been too scared to look into the future for Wil. Even thinking of schooling and stuff I would get upset and scared. But watching this show has totally put me at ease. I was laughing out loud with them, and crying with Sam when he was heart broken. I now see that I dont need to be scared. Wil will have the same things to deal with as his big brothers. Happiness, heartache, and every other emotion and situation. Writing this now I do feel a bit silly saying it out loud. But I really was scared to look into the future.Again Thanks heaps. I cant wait to show my hubby when he gets home from work. And to share the show with my close family and friends.I cant wait for the next episode. I think this will be my new reality show addiction!!!!!!I have a feeling that my Wil is going to be a lot like Sam. He already does the eyebrow raising. X

Ha ha, No I didnt know that about Aden. Altho looking at the photos of him, I can see why!I was crying at that point too. And yeah I really love it how they do the voice overs themselves.It really has helped me. I have already sent the lnk to all my close family and friends.X

Watched it last night for the first time great stuff. It still scares me a little that the parents had to fund the house - I'm sure the filming helps to cover the costs but how are we all going to afford this kind of experience for our own children when the reach this stage????? The support workers wouldn't be cheap - they are fantastic and the show is great for acceptance and understanding but we obviously can't all do it!!

The show is set in England, where their funding would work differently to here. I don't actually know how it works here, but my mother works in a similar home in New Zealand, and she is paid by the government.

Thats awesome. I will definately buy it. I have told heaps of people already and cant wait for the next catch up with the DSWA group to let them all know.Watching it was such a turning point in thinking about Wils future for me!

Firstly, my internet connection is crap so any judgement I make is going to be completely off since it takes me about 3 min to watch 1 min in 5 sec increments .

What I'm not sure about is them all being viewed as a 'spectacle'. Ie I'm all for individual characters shown in regular situations. But then I guess this is a regular situation (a good gig if you can get it ). So I guess it's the audience that worries me. But then the audience over here at DS Down Under has given it big applause so I should have nothing to worry about?

I'm just not sure?? And the internet connection maybe causing this view, but is the piss being taken a little? Or is it quite funny and I'm being sensitive??

I think that you need to look at it as simply what it is. It is showing the world how normal these people are. That they live happy lives. Don't forget, that the parents of one of the houseguests are heavily involved in the house, and I don't think they would have the slightest interest in being these people being taken advantage of.

Also, I think it says a lot that they speak for themselves. I don't think it is any more invasive than all the other reality shows out there. Things like John and Kate plus eight (is that his name?), are really about showing the world how someone else lives. It is human nature to be curious and to want to understand someone else more. I really enjoy getting to know people in this way, and I think it highlights not only our differences, but our similarities also.

I think most people who would go to the bother of downloading and watching this would be people who honestly want to learn and broaden their own understandings. I also know that one of the men my mother helps who has DS, loves watching shows and movies with other 'intellectually handicapped' (his words - he's in his 40's) people. He even tells mum how great it is to be 'intellectually handicapped'. "I don't have to go to work every day, I have a nice place to live, I have you and [the other workers] to look after me, I have nice friends to share my house with. What's not to like?" (This was a conversation he had with mum when watching a movie with a DS character)

So I think it is cool that our kids can see others just like them having a great time. And going by all the comments, I think that is the way this show is being recieved by most viewers. If there are those out there who would use the show as a put-down, I honestly think they would lose interest very quickly.

BTW, I have a disastrously slow connection too. I just set the volume to mute and let it fully download first before attempting to watch it:)

Thanks Carolyn, since I had so much trouble watching it i flicked through the forum comments and completely choked up. I was kinda swayed at the end of reading them - very very positive. I especially got a lump in my throat reading Megas sisters comments.

i think it really might be the slow connection. ie was watching the bit where sam is going to see the shemen (can't remember the correct term ) and it seemed to go on and on for ages about the fact that that weren't actually female. But in reality it would have been a 1 min conversation vs the 5 min it took me to watch it.

I love it wouldn’t it be great if we could all give our kids this. I just found out over the weekends that my FIL’s niece, she was born premature has brain damage and is blind. She was placed in a group home last year as her mother has Bipolar went off her meds and went ot hospital, she has only been hospitalised twice when her meds have been missed this is over years. Anyway a friend put her in, her DD was taken from her and placed in a Group home.

It’s all worked out for the best for her DD. But here is the sad part for out kids. My sister told me (cause mum wouldn’t) that this niece has twice now beat up (bloodied and busied) this lady with Down syndrome in the group home. How f**Ked is that. The niece is extremely violent, I’ve meet her lots of times when she goes off there is no stoping her. Otherwise she is great, does a lot of rocking so sensory input…

Noway in hell I want Aden to ever enter into a group home. See on Home and away TV show, they are looking into placing the autistic boy in a group home,. They make the home sound great. Ha not reality. I wonder if they will have any of the people in the group home beat up other members I’m thinking not. I dont care if a person is disabled or not, they shouldn’t’ be put in a situation where they can attack another person with a disability specially one who cant defend herself. don’t get me wrong I love Renee but I wouldn’t’ put my child in a group home with her. We leave if she isn’t going to get her own way, cause man he goes off. Had her Grandfather down on the ground kicking into him. She might be blind and all but it doesn’t stop her.

The sad thing is that it's not unheard of for this stuff to happen in situations of forced co-tenancy. When a person does not have the ability to choose where they live and who they live with it really is no different to an institution, just in a prettier package.

I think the storyline on Home and Away is great and it seems to me that it's a house that people choose to live in, rather than being placed.

I recently went to a discussion group with the Community Resource Unit about independent living and looking at other options than those that the government provides. It was a real eye opener and has made me think a lot more creatively about it all.

Shared living really can be a positive thing, but only when the tenants are there by choice. The Community Safeguards Coalition released a position statement called 'My life, my home, my solution' earlier this year that might interest some of you. You can find it at http://www.qppd.org/downloads/My%20Life,%20My%20Home,%20My%20Solution%20-%20March%202009.pdf